With a thought, he released the bind.
The serpents lurched forward the moment their bodies were freed, their slit-pupiled eyes burning with desperation. Their coiled muscles tensed—injured, but still dangerous.
Arthur didn't move.
Instead, he turned his head slightly.
"Sylvaris."
A single command.
Sylvaris struck instantly.
The enormous serpent darted forward, his thick body snapping like a whip. His fangs flashed, sinking deep into the closest serpent's throat. A low, guttural hiss filled the air as poison flooded its bloodstream.
The second serpent lunged toward Sylvaris's side—its body a blur of motion as it coiled and struck, fangs glistening with lethal venom, aimed straight for Sylvaris's exposed side—
But Sylvaris was faster.
His tail snapped out like a whip, striking with the force of a falling boulder. The impact was instant. Bone cracked, and the serpent's body was hurled backward, crashing into a thick tree trunk with a sickening crack.
